Ducks fans who saw the overtime highlight goal by Todd Bertuzzi in Calgary's victory against MInnesota Wednesday night might be wondering why they didn't see more of that when Bertuzzi was in Anaheim last season.

Bertuzzi is healthy and showing he can be productive when he isn't dragged down by back issues. He has eight goals and 22 points with the Flames, although he has a minus-13 rating.

The Ducks are set to open their 82-game NHL regular-season schedule Thursday night at San Jose with five newcomers on their roster:

Brendan Morrison

A skilled center and former middleman on a dynamite Vancouver line that featured wingers MarkusNaslund and Todd Bertuzzi, Morrison signed a one-year, $2.75 million contract with the Ducks in July. Morrison, 33, will be counted on to mesh with right wing Teemu Selanne and anchor a productive second scoring line.

Ken Klee

A veteran of 863 NHL games with Washington, Toronto, New Jersey, Colorado and Atlanta, Klee arrived in a Sept. 26 trade that sent defenseman Mathieu Schneider to the Thrashers. At 37, Klee is not the most mobile defenseman, but he is expected to provide solid, responsible play while possibly becoming Chris Pronger's new blue-line partner.

Friday's assignment of rookie winger Bobby Ryan to the Iowa Chops of the American League was unavoidable because of salary-cap constraints, Ducks general manager Brian Burke said.

"It is definitely cap related," Burke said. "That's an enormous part of this. We've looked at 100 ways to try to start the season and have the option of keeping Bobby. We can't do that. Bobby Ryan is a great kid. I wish there were better options to deal with this situation, but there are not."

Even without Ryan and his $1.7467 million hit on their books, the Ducks are "going to be very close to the cap," Burke said. A reasonable expectation at this point is that the Ducks will come in at about $56 million, or only $700,000 below the NHL limit. Teams must leave some cushion to allow for minor-league call-ups necessary when injuries strike.

While Ducks decision-makers, led by Coach Randy Carlyle, had yet to reach a final verdict on the club's roster makeup and Ryan was "not a lock" to make the team, Burke said, "he was clearly in the hunt.

"Bobby Ryan had an excellent camp," Burke said. "He did everything we asked him to do in the off-season. We challenged him this summer to get his fitness level to where it should be, and he did that.

Bertuzzi, 33, is trying to resurrect his career after a disappointing stint with the Ducks last season.

The power forward never found a groove with the club, and Bertuzzi (right) said he knows why.

"In Anaheim I thought it was going to be a good opportunity but I just didn't fit into the mode there with ice time - playing 10 to 12 minutes a game, it's kind of hard to perform," he told reporters.

For the record, Bertuzzi averaged 16:27 of ice time last season. His season was set back by a concussion and recurring symptoms. He finished with 14 goals and 26 assists in 68 games and had two assists in a first round loss to Dallas in the playoffs.

With nearly six weeks remaining before the opening of training camp, the Ducks face a multitude of questions.

At least a couple of them figure to be answered before players report to Anaheim Ice next month. Camp developments will determine other matters, and some will have to wait until the NHL regular season is at least well under way. Still others will likely remain uncertain until after the 2008-09 campaign concludes.

Here, then, is a sort of top-10 list, with more questions than answers.

10) What does the hockey future hold for Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli?

Since NHL commissioner Gary Bettman handed him an indefinite suspension June 24 in the wake of a guilty plea to one count of lying to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission about his role in the backdating of employee stock-option grants at Broadcom Corp., Henry Samueli, left, has been prohibited from any dealings with the team. Susan Samueli opted to abide by terms of the suspension in support of her husband and to avoid any improper appearance. If Henry Samueli's Aug. 18 sentencing goes as expected, with five years probation, a $12 million payment to the U.S. Treasury and a $250,000 fine, Bettman would appear unlikely to impose any further discipline. As for the length of the suspension, one year is probably a logical guess.

The Ducks gained the go-ahead to buy out the remaining year on Todd Bertuzzi's contract when the veteran winger cleared waivers Saturday morning.

While Bertuzzi will become an unrestricted free agent on Tuesday, the Ducks will be responsible for paying two-thirds of the $4 million Bertuzzi was due next season. Terms of the collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and its players association enable the Ducks to spread the payment over two years, a move that will give the club a $2.67 million salary-cap savings during the 2008-09 NHL season.

Bertuzzi, 33, signed a two-year, $8 million deal with the Ducks in July, but didn't come close to regaining the form that made him one of the NHL's premier power forwards with the Vancouver Canucks earlier this decade. An early season concussion shelved Bertuzzi for 14 games, and he wound up with 14 goals, 40 points and 97 penalty minutes in 68 games.

Ducks general manager Brian Burke, who held the same position in Vancouver when Bertuzzi starred for the Canucks, signed the burly forward ostensibly as a replacement for Teemu Selanne, who sat out most of last season while contemplating possible retirement. The Ducks are hoping to sign Selanne, an unrestricted free agent, for one more season.

“When you have to get players back, or sign players that weren't there when Todd signed, Todd became a casualty of that,” said Pat Morris, Bertuzzi's agent. “Todd saw that something had to give.”

The Ducks on Friday announced that they have placed Todd Bertuzzi on waivers, with the intention of buying the veteran winger out of his contract unless another NHL team claims him by a 9 a.m. (PDT) deadline Saturday.

The Ducks signed Bertuzzi as a free agent last summer, giving the former Vancouver Canucks star a two-year, $8 million deal. After suffering an early season concussion that cost him 14 games, Bertuzzi finished with 14 goals, 40 points and 97 penalty minutes in 68 games.

"Todd Bertuzzi is a quality person who we believe can still play at the NHL level," Ducks general manager Brian Burke said in a statement. "Unfortunately, we are handcuffed by our salary-cap situation. We thank him for his efforts last year and wish him the best of luck in the future."

In the likely event that he is unclaimed, Bertuzzi will receive two-thirds of the $4 million he is due this season, or $2.66 million, and become an unrestricted free agent. Terms of the NHL's collective bargaining agreement call for the Ducks to be able to spread the salary-cap hit over two seasons, giving them a $2.67 million savings against the cap in 2008-09.

The move marks the end of a reunion between Bertuzzi Burke, who were formerly together in Vancouver. Bertuzzi, 33, had his best season with the Canucks in 2002-03, wracking up 46 goals, 97 points and 144 penalty minutes, but was unable to regain his status as an elite power forward with the Ducks last season.

Winger Todd Bertuzzi is set to return from a 14-game absence caused by a concussion when the Ducks visit the Dallas Stars on Wednesday night at American Airlines Center.

Bertuzzi pronounced himself ready to go after Wednesday's morning skate. Along with the expected return to the lineup of veteran defenseman Mathieu Schneider, who has missed the past two games because of a hip flexor, Ducks coach Randy Carlyle figures to have all of his players available for duty for the first time this season.

“I just want to get back and help out and contribute,” Bertuzzi said. “Obviously, I'm just going to have to keep things a little bit simple early, just try to get in there and try to be consistent and try to contribute in any which way I can.”

Bertuzzi, who signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the Ducks on July 2, had a goal and an assist in seven games this season before being hurt by a big hit from Minnesota Wild winger Derek Boogaard in an Oct. 14 game at Honda Center. Bertuzzi had suffered a less severe concussion while playing for the Detroit Red Wings late last season, and suggested that he might have endured several earlier in his career, when such head injuries often went undiagnosed.

“You know back in the day, like 10 years ago, concussions were nothing,” Bertuzzi said. “Nobody knew anything. You got your bell rung, you felt like crap for a couple days, and you skated it out of you, basically. I'm pretty sure I would have had a handful back then. I did a lot of skating through the middle with my head down as a kid. Now you're a little bit more aware of it. It just seemed that this one was the real deal. It's been a lot longer than I ever anticipated. I'm just glad it cleared up.”